Seen: Edward Walton Wilcox – Fanatic @ Merry Karnowsky

Channeling apprehension, anxiety and reaction to troubled times, Edward Walton Wilcox presented a large body of emphatic paintings for Fanatic which opened this past Saturday @ Merry Karnowsky. With his ‘A Little Paranoia Goes a Long Way’ installation featuring ten identical fully kitted H&K assault rifles in two gleaming glass cases, Wilcox seems to revel in the seductiveness of the high-tech weaponry while also reflecting on the anxiety and practical limits involved in preparing for the worst.

Working almost exclusively in a palette of dark reds and browns for his paintings , Wilcox alternates between portraitures with overtly dark content such as a young girl armed with an H&K MP5 submachine gun and landscapes which mix nostalgic escapism through poignant imagery of trains and the tranquility of a small boat on a lake with the intrusive conflict that threatens and surrounds our reality. Wilcox rounds out Fanatic with two dramatic carved wooden sculptures which invoke the gothic traditions present throughout his work. Both have a mythological, old world feel connected in spirit rather than time with the more contemporary pieces.

Running through June 12th, Fanatic definitely demands a personal viewing to feel the impact of the work as a collective whole. See the official preview for full details on the entire collection.